Triple Berry Oat Muffins

$3.85 recipe / $0.48 each

I really don’t make muffins often because I kind of resent the fact that they parade around like a legit breakfast when they’re really just a cupcake that you eat in the morning. Fakers! Anyway, I made these “apology” Triple Berry Oat Muffins this week and I have to admit, they were really damn good!

What’s an apology muffin? That’s when your dog eats your friend’s muffin and leaves him without breakfast the next morning. Bad girl. And since the dog can’t say sorry herself (she didn’t even throw any puppy eyes!), I baked a whole batch of Triple Berry Oat Muffins to make up for the one she ate.

I wanted to make these muffins resemble the big delicious muffins that you buy from a bakery (like the one my dog ate), but try to sneak in at least a little something healthy. I used King Arthur Flour’s basic muffin recipe, but subbed in rolled oats, as per their notes, and some frozen berries that I had stashed in my freezer. I was at the very end of my all-purpose flour, so I used a 1/4 cup whole wheat flour to make up for what I was missing. And hey, that’s more fiber! Lastly, I added a touch of cinnamon to the batter, and made a delicious cinnamon-oat crumble topping. Yaasssss.

These Triple Berry Oat Muffins really were awesome. The King Arthur formula really is great and produces a big, moist, and tender muffin. We’ve been eating them all week and my dog, Zoe, almost snatched one of these for herself again (she’s a muffin maniac!). I can’t wait to experiment with different flavors and add-ins. Next up, pumpkin?

If you don’t have a friend and a dog to help you eat the whole batch, muffins freeze really well. Just make sure they are fully cooled before wrapping them tightly in plastic and then zipping them up in a freezer bag. The frozen muffins thaw fairly quickly at room temperature or can be reheated briefly in the microwave.

Triple Berry Oat Muffins

These big, moist, and fluffy Triple Berry Oat Muffins are a real treat for breakfast and boast the goodness of rolled oats.

Total Cost
$3.85 recipe / $0.48 each

Prep Time15minutes

Cook Time20minutes

Total Time35minutes

Servings8large muffins

AuthorAdapted from King Arthur Flour

Ingredients

MUFFINS

1cupall-purpose flour$0.19

1/4cupwhole wheat flour$0.10

1cuprolled oats$0.26

1/4cupbrown sugar$0.16

1/4cupwhite sugar$0.08

1/2tspsalt$0.02

1Tbspbaking powder$0.11

1/4tspcinnamon$0.02

1cupmilk$0.49

1/4cupvegetable or canola oil$0.16

2large eggs$0.75

1cupfrozen berries$1.00

OAT CRUMBLE TOPPING

1/2cuprolled oats$0.13

2Tbspchilled butter$0.28

2Tbspbrown sugar$0.08

1/4tspcinnamon$0.02

Instructions

Prepare the oat crumble topping first, so it's ready to go on the muffins as soon as they're mixed. In a small bowl, combine the oats, butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Use your hands to massage the oats, brown sugar, and cinnamon, into the butter until it's evenly combined and clumpy. Refrigerate the mixture until you're ready to top the muffins.

Pour the whisked wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir just until they are combined, it doesn't need to be perfectly mixed. There may still be clumps and a few dry spots, but it's important to avoid over mixing.

Add the frozen berries to the mixture and gently fold in. Again, avoid over mixing because the berry juice will turn the muffins blueish grey.

Line eight muffin tin cups with paper liners, then fill each one to the top with the muffin batter (use more cups if needed, just make sure to fill to the top). Sprinkle the prepared oat crumble topping onto each muffin.

Transfer the muffin tin to the oven and immediately turn the heat down to 400 degrees. Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until the muffins have risen into peaks, have cracked slightly, and are deep golden brown on top. Remove the muffins from the oven and the muffin tin (use a knife to loosen any parts that have spilled out over top) and allow them to cool.

In a separate bow, whisk together 2 large eggs, 1 cup milk, and 1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil. Whisk until smooth.

Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients.

Stir the two together JUST until they’re combined. It’s really important not to over mix here, so it’s okay if it’s lumpy and there are a couple dry spots left. You’ll stir just a bit more after adding the berries.

Add one cup frozen berries and gently fold them into the batter. Don’t stir too much because they’ll turn the batter blue. Also, keeping them frozen until you stir them in helps prevent the juice from spreading and turning the batter blue.

Line about eight cups of a muffin tin with paper, then fill each one to the top with the muffin batter. Usually you only fill the cups of a muffin tin 3/4 full, but if you want a nice big crown on the muffin like they have at the bakeries, fill them to the top. Finally, top the muffins with the oat crumble mixture.

Here’s the side view for reference, so you can see how full they are. Transfer the muffin tin to the oven, turn the heat down to 400, then let them bake for 22-25 minutes.

Or until they’ve risen into nice rounded muffins, the tops have just a couple cracks, and they’re deeply golden brown. YUM.

Remove them from the muffin tin to let them cool. It helps to use a knife to gently loosen the muffins where they’ve spilled over top.

I just stuck these in the oven and am crossing my fingers! I followed the recipe exactly (I’m no novice – I can actually bake muffins without a recipe for the most part), but this batter seems awfully runny!

Hi! I’m Beth

As a food lover and a number cruncher I've decided that cooking on a budget shouldn't mean canned beans and ramen noodles night after night. Join me for delicious recipes designed for small budgets. More »